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<title>A Conversation at the Hippo Enclosure by RatMonarch</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27737776">A Conversation at the Hippo Enclosure</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/RatMonarch/pseuds/RatMonarch'>RatMonarch</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Vampire: The Masquerade, World of Darkness (Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dreams and Nightmares, Friendship, Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:01:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>830</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27737776</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/RatMonarch/pseuds/RatMonarch</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Gary knew it was all too good to be true.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Conversation at the Hippo Enclosure</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>All characters are OCs for a Vampire the Masquerade game I am doing with friends. I am simply posting it here for archival purposes.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Did you know hippos are one of the deadliest land mammals? I heard they kill 500 people a year!” Gary said, looking in wonder at the apparently ferocious creatures in front of him. It was admittedly hard to envision that fact when they were acting so docile and languid at the moment. One was just lying in the mud with its eyes closed, while another bobbed in the water, only the top of its head visible above the surface. The last one was… well, that one was going to the bathroom. He was going to look away from that. </p>
<p>	Harry, who was standing beside him, gave him a weird look. “Why do you know so much about hippos?”</p>
<p>	“Because they’re cool!” Gary insisted, slightly frustrated. Why did no one else seem able to see this fact but him?</p>
<p>	“Well I think you’re even cooler,” Harry said, finger gunning in his direction with no shame, a smile on his face. It was both an incredibly dorky line and move, but Gary couldn’t help but grin back at him, charmed. </p>
<p>	“Hey, thanks man,” Gary said, pushing Harry playfully. </p>
<p>	Harry gave him a shove back, and the two of them got into a light shoving match for a few seconds, before finally relenting and settling back into quiet, staring at the idle hippos. </p>
<p>	This was a nice situation, a peaceful one. The night air felt warm and pleasant on his skin. A large full moon hung bright in the sky, shining moonlight down on the exhibits. He was here at the zoo of all places, staring at his favorite animals in the world, with his best friend Harry by his side. This should be a good memory. A pleasant one. </p>
<p>	Too bad though, none of it was real. </p>
<p>	It was also too bad that it would never have the chance to ever be real. </p>
<p>	Gary frowned at the thought. </p>
<p>	Just like that, just with a little thought, the illusion was dead. The fleeting moments of joy he had felt were gone now. </p>
<p>Thought process now dark, he turned to Harry and said, “I think I know something that is even more dangerous than hippos though.”</p>
<p>	“Really?” Harry asked. “And what exactly is that?” </p>
<p>	“Vampires,” Gary said, a note of bitterness in his voice. </p>
<p>	Harry let out a humorless laugh, before saying, “I would argue that point, but given the circumstances, I don’t really think I have a leg to stand on.”</p>
<p>	Gary didn’t bother to laugh at that. Instead, he just frowned and stared sightlessly ahead. So it was true. This was just a dream or something. A figment of his imagination. None of this was real.</p>
<p>	Harry, the real Harry, was still dead and gone. Killed by the very same creatures Gary was. The thought made Gary sick.  </p>
<p>	The fake Harry noticed his silence. Giving Gary a sympathetic look, he said, “You know, it’s not your fault… what happened to be me was beyond your control.” </p>
<p>	Gary felt his hands clench into fists, anger suddenly flooding his body. Who that anger was directed at though, he didn’t know. Himself? This fake Harry? The real Harry? The nameless vampire who had taken Harry’s life? All of the above? He didn’t know. All he knew was he felt mad and upset and he felt tempted to vent it out on something, anything. </p>
<p> Instead,  he just shook his head and said, “It was my fault though. I should’ve stopped you. I could’ve tried harder.” </p>
<p>	Harry shook his head back. “You did the best you could, man. I was determined to find out the truth for you, and nothing you said would’ve stopped me.” He then let out a small laugh and rather darkly added, “It’s just a shame I did a shit job at doing it.”</p>
<p>	Gary didn’t bother to humor him this time. “Not funny, Harry.” </p>
<p>	“You’re right, I am sorry,” Harry said, ducking his head a little bit, as if embarrassed. </p>
<p>	The two of them were lulled into silence again, this one considerably more awkward and depressing rather than comfortable. </p>
<p>	Gary contemplated leaving this scenario altogether. None of this was real after all. Harry wasn’t truly there. The real Harry was dead and gone and it was all Gary’s fault that he was. All of this was just a dream that he would eventually wake up from. So why torture himself for any longer, being with a fake?</p>
<p>	He was about to up and leave, when suddenly Fake Harry said, “You shouldn’t hate yourself you know. The vampires that killed me may have been assholes, but I know not all of you are like that. At the very least, it sounds like you and your coterie aren’t.” Then, looking at Gary seriously, he insisted, “You’re not bad, Gary.”</p>
<p>	Gary paused for a moment, mulling over this Harry’s words. </p>
<p>	Then giving the fake Harry a smile with no real emotion behind it, he said, “I wish I could believe that, Harry. I really do.”</p>
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